Long, strange trip ending for VW's hippie van

Share this story

Share this story

In this Aug. 25, 2013 photo, members of the Sampa Kombi club, a group ofVolkswagen van owners, gather for their monthly meeting, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In Brazil the VW van is known as the "Kombi," an abbreviation for the German "Kombinationsfahrzeug" that loosely translates as "cargo-passenger van." Brazil is the last place in the world still producing the iconic vehicle, or "bus" as it's known by aficionados, but VW says production will end Dec. 31. Safety regulations mandate that every vehicle in Brazil must have air bags and automatic brakes starting in 2014, and the company says it cannot change production to meet the law. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)